Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie

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Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie

by Andrew Sykes

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 · rating details · 26 ratings · 3 reviews

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Published (first published August 15th 2011)

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Apr 07, 2013 Jacqueline rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: france, cycling

Andrew is a teacher who decided to put his summer holiday to good use by cycling from Reading in Berkshire, through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland and into and through Italy. That is 3,300km following the Eurovelo 5 route, alone, unless of course you include Reggie, his bike. Now as I am the sort of person who names her cars and even her central heating boiler, I love that Andrew named his bike and it really added an extra something to the book for me.

For 30 cycling days in 36...more Andrew is a teacher who decided to put his summer holiday to good use by cycling from Reading in Berkshire, through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland and into and through Italy. That is 3,300km following the Eurovelo 5 route, alone, unless of course you include Reggie, his bike. Now as I am the sort of person who names her cars and even her central heating boiler, I love that Andrew named his bike and it really added an extra something to the book for me.

For 30 cycling days in 36 days he clocked up about 100km and about 6 hours in the saddle each day. He climbed mountains, braved city centre traffic, endured cobbles and spoke-snapping incidents and was attacked by killer mosquitoes. So it's difficult not to use the word `inspirational'. Andrew himself says he was `inspired' by the Beijing Olympic cycling of 2008 and spent two years trying to pinpoint an exact route, for although Eurovelo 5 takes you from London to Brindisi in Italy, loosely in recognition of the Via Roma Francigena pilgrim route, it's a very vague directional guide that doesn't exist in detailed map form.

Reading this book in the cold, dismal month of January made me long for warm summer days cycling the French vineyards with my beautiful Blue Belle. Oh yes, `inspired' by Reggie, my lovely blue retro road bike now has a name too. For us a good day in the saddle once a week, covering anywhere between 40 and 80km is about the norm, however our routes are planned in advance and often follow well signed local rides. For Andrew, much of the detail in his journey was put together the night before and he rarely knew exactly where he would be laying his head at night - now that is `inspiring' for a control freak planner like me! This book and the likes of Sir Bradley with his 2012 Tour de France win and not to mention the fantastic Team GB cyclists and their Olympic `bling' are likely to `inspire' a lot more bike adventures in the coming years. We will certainly be upping our game this summer in terms of distance and pace. The cyclists among you cannot fail to be fired up by reading this book, but for those who prefer armchair travelling I'm sure you will enjoy Andrew's interesting description of his journey.(less)

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Aug 22, 2012 Tom Cunliffe rated it 4 of 5 stars

A remarkable achievement in cycling so far in such a short space of time. But perhaps not written by the most interesting of people - the book is a little, dare I say, "pedestrian" and lacks sparkle.

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Jul 08, 2012 Mark Bell rated it 4 of 5 stars

It sounds like there's a long list of books not to buy if you're looking for a turn-by-turn account of the Eurovelo-5 route, and this book belongs on that list. This is a good description of travelling through Europe by bicycle. It is inspiring (I think that's why my wife hid it!).. Looking forward to Andrew's next trip!

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